JJBA: Family is forever
by Tryingtowriteprostyle
Summary: Many years after Emporio defeated Pucci, Irene and Annakiss live a quiet family life. But, trouble is never far from this family. And now it's up to Irene and Annakiss's adopted kids to save the day. Open the game, twin jojos.
1. The tragic twins

In this world, there are many kinds of people. But, they all share a core truth. That is the fact that they are all guided by the hand of fate. Some have greatness thrust upon them, others tragedy. The key to defining a life worth living is finding a balance between the two.

This is the story of two souls. Twin lives, brought into the world together. The hand of fate dealing them tragedy and greatness both. Light and dark. But, finding their balance will not only define their lives, but shall shape the future.

This is a story of trials, friends, and above all else, family. Because, for these siblings, family is what matters most. Family is forever.

Date: October 19, 2028

Location: Franklin Memorial Highschool in Starling, Ohio

"So, all in all, they're great kids. But, Joel could try to keep his head up and his eyes open more. I know he's not actually asleep, but still." A teacher in a lavender two piece suit said.

"Yeah, you're the third teacher I've heard that from. And then, on the flip side, some have said that Joanne is too attentive. Like, she snaps her hand up and answers a question so fast that nobody else has a chance. Boy, for twins, they sure are polar opposites." Said a woman with black hair and blonde highlights.

"Yes, they are. But, despite Joel seeming to be asleep all the time or Joanne hogging every question, they are both still two of my top students."

"Well, that's good to hear. Guess i won't have to ground them when i get home. I threatened i would if i got bad reports. But, all their teachers sounded just like you, Ms.Parton. Guess i'll have to come up with a reward now."

"Good luck with that, Mrs. Narciso." Ms. Parton said.

"Thanks. Well, their only other teachers were the gym teachers and they aren't here. So, i guess it's time to head home." Mrs. Narciso said.

"Um, Mrs. Narciso?'

"Yeah?"

"Before you go, there is something I'd like to ask you about your kids. Something I heard that i'm hoping you could clear up. So, could we speak off the record for a moment?"

"Sure. And if it's off the record, you can just call me Irene."

"Okay. And you can call me Rebecca. So, now, what i want to know about is their nickname. They have two of them. One is the jojos. That's not hard to figure out. Both have Jo in their name, so it's an easy thing to come up with.But the other one is the tragic twins. Where does that come from?" Rebecca asked.

"You must be a fairly new teacher if you haven't heard about that one."

"I'm fairly new to Starling in general. I moved here from Akron to take this job late in the last semester."

"Ah, I see. Well, welcome to Starling. Now as for that nickname, sure. I can explain it. It all comes from how i got my kids. I'm sure you've noticed by now that i look nothing like them and neither does my husband, Annakiss. That's because Joel and Joanne are adopted. How we got them is a tale made for a movie. See, after our first anniversary, Annakiss and I had to move here from Florida for work. We were made the chiefs of the local branch of Rogue, the fashion magazine."

"Really? Wow. I've only ever skimmed over an issue or two, but i have liked what i've seen."

"Well, thanks. If you get the chance, pick up this month's issue. I personally oversaw the cover story."

"I think I will. So, you moved here for work..."

"Yeah, and we worked our butts off for a good long while. We finally got some time to ouselves around my birthday. So, needing to get away from it all, we went camping in the woods. Our second morning out there, we hear this horrible screeching noise, followed by a loud boom. We immeadiately assumed it was a car accident, so we went to see if we could help. What we saw i will never shake out of my head. It was a car accident and the car had slammed into a tree. Two people were in the car. A man and a woman. The man was slumped over the center console, bits of shattered glass stuck to him everywhere. But, the hardest thing to look at was a tree branch piercing into his chest. There was no doubt he was dead. Meanwhile, the woman had relatively minor damage and was alive. But, she still looked like she was in pain. We soon discovered why. She was pregnant and in labor. They had been rushing to the hospital and lost control on the wet road. It had rained heavily the night before. Naturally, we called nine one one and we even went to the hospital with the woman. And we stayed the entire time she was in labor. Hours went by and we never moved from the waiting room. Something in the backs of our minds just told us we were needed there. Eventually, the doctors came and told us that Anna, the woman, had sucessfully given birth to her twins and they appeared to suffer no ill effects from the crash. But, Anna herself hadn't made it. She had survived that wreck just to die from the oldest killer of women ever, child-birth. The doctors then said that Anna and her late husband had no immeadiate family to send the children to. But, during the delivery, Anna had stated that we were to be the twins' godparents. Because we had been there when she needed someone the most. So, there was an option open for us to take them. We just looked at each other, stunned. All we could think to say was that we wanted to see the babies. And once we saw little Joel and Joanne in the nursery, our hearts melted. We just couldn't say no to taking them. And that's how we ended up adopting them." Irene said, wiping away tears.

"Wow, that's an incredible story. I can certainly understand the nickname now. And I'm glad they have you, Irene. It's clear that you love them dearly." Rebecca said, fanning herself with her hands to keep from crying.

"You bet I do. I even gave them some of my blood."

"What? Why?"

"They got sick when they were still less than a year old. Turned out they had inheirited a blood defect from their birth father. It was treatable, thankfully. And part of the treatment required a blood transfusion. Turned out i was compatible as a donor. So, since the amount they needed wasn't really harmful to me, we just transferred my blood to them. Worked like a charm too, thank God."

"Wow. You are truly a great mother, Irene."

"Nah. Any good mom would've done that."

"Well, you are definitely a good mom. Thank you for answering my questions."

"No problem. Well, i'd better head home and see what my over grown rug rats are up to."

Meanwhile, at the Narciso household.

"Joel!"

A young man with brown hair poked his head out of his room. He was wearing a blue shirt with white z's going down from the right shoulder to the left waist and distressed black jeans.

"What, Joanne?"

His sister reached the top of the nearby steps. She too had brown hair, but a lighter shade. She was wearing a pink top with the word brainy written across the chest, a pleated red skirt and black stockings.

"I just remembered. I promised Yumi that i would bring her my notes from today's classes. She was out sick today."

"You know that she's just using you, right?"

"I know. I'm just too nice for my own good. Her house is only twenty minutes away. I'm gonna walk them over before it gets too late. But..."

"But?"

"Well, you know mom doesn't like us going out on our own. Buddy system, remember bro?"

"Good grief. Do i have to come with you? Mom's at the parent teacher confrences and dad's still at work. They'd have no idea that you went by yourself."

"Please, Joel. I need you to come with me. Please?" Joanne asked, putting on puppy dog eyes.

"Gimme a break. 'Sigh' Fine. Let's go."

The twins grabbed their shoes and jackets. Joel had black jean jacket with z's on it's back like his shirt and blue high tops. Joanne, meanwhile, had red pumps and a pink jacket with it's zipper running up the left side of the chest. On it's back was a large heart with an eye like symbol in the middle. Joanne also put on her favorite earrings, which also had her jacket's symbol on them.

Finally, Joanne shot a text to Irene to tell her where they were going and the twins were off. As they walked, Joanne kept fidgeting and glancing over her shoulder. Joel took notice of his sister's actions.

"What's wrong, Joanne?"

Joanne's eyes shifted from side to side before she pulled out her phone and texted Joel.

'Can't talk. He's following us.'

Playing along, Joel texted back.

'Who is?'

'Henry Swift.'

'That creepy, cliche goth guy from our science class?"

'Yes. He's moving from bush to bush, thinking he's being stealthy. He's about ten feet behind us.'

'Want me to say something?'

'No. It won't do any good. But this is why I wanted you to come with me. I spotted him in our bushes before I came to get you.'

'What?! The hell does he want?'

'Me. He wants me. He's been stalking me since we were made to be lab partners a month ago. All because I was nice to him when no one else was.'

'A month?! Why didn't you say anything?'

'Cause you, mom and dad would've killed him. I don't need that. I need to fight my own battles.'

"There's fighting your own battles and there's being crazy." Joel said outloud.

"Stay calm, Joel. Just follow my lead." Joanne said, glancing suggestively back to her phone.

'You know that he's almost eighteen, right? He got held back a year twice. He's almost an adult. Did you tell anyone at school?' Joel texted.

'I told our gym teachers, but they said nothing could be done unless I had at least one witness to back up my claim. I've been trying to set him up since then. Always making sure I'm near people who'll see him. But it hasn't worked so far. However, I know I can count on you, bro. So, stick with me.'

'I will, sis. It'll be okay.'

The two continued on and safely made it to Yumi's house. They were welcomed in by Yumi's mother. While Joanne went with the mom to hand over her notes, Joel was looking out the front window. Right at Henry.

Joel mouthed the words 'You'll never have her. I won't let you.' to Henry. He then flashed the I'm watching you signal to the older teen. Henry was able to understand Joel. He scowled at Joel and then pointed at him. Then he slashed a finger across his throat. Joel understood this meaning.

"Oh, I'm dead, huh? Bring it on, belt boy." Joel said, noting the leather belts Henry had tied around his arms and legs on top of his all black clothes.

Joel watched as Henry walked away. Joanne returned shortly and the twins were on their way home. Meanwhile, Irene was already home and taking a phone call.

"Sure, Emporio. We'd love to have you over tomorrow."


	2. Ora Dora Awaken the twin stands

The next day, Irene had everyone up early. It had been a long time since Emporio had come to visit, so she wanted the house spotless. Once it was good enough for her, Irene had everyone help prepare a large lunch for everybody. Finally, around noon, Emporio finally showed up.

"Emporio! It's so good to see you again. Come in, come in." Irene said as she answered the door.

Emporio was now a few inches shorter than Irene, with shaggy hair forever adorned with his prized ball cap. He was wearing a blue shirt underneath a Miami Marlins jacket and crisp blue jeans.

"Thanks, Irene. Hey, Annakiss, looking good." Emporio said as the purple haired man approached.

"Trying to, Emporio. Trying to. Hey, kids! Get over here and say hi to your uncle!"

"We're setting the table, dad. Give us a minute." Joanne called from the dining room.

"I'll go help them." Irene said and walked off.

"Setting the table?" Emporio questioned.

"You know how Irene is. Any friends we haven't seen for a while get the royal treatment." Annakiss said.

"So there's a whole meal in there, isn't there?"

"Yup. More like dinner than lunch, really. Hope your hungry."

"Well, I am, kinda. But, you didn't have to do this just for me."

"Tell that to Irene."

"Aw crap!" The men heard Irene say loudly.

Annakiss and Emporio walked into the dining room to see Irene looking at a nearly empty container.

"What's the matter, babe?" Annakiss asked.

"We're out of veggie dip." Irene said, holding up the container.

"I'm sure the veggies will be fine without it." Emporio said.

"Yeah, but, i really like it. Well, there's only one thing to do. Joanne, grab my purse. It's sitting on the kitchen counter."

Joanne fetched her mother's purse and Irene pulled a twenty dollar bill from her pocket book.

"Here. Take this money and walk down to the corner store. Get the dip and some soda. Take Joel with you."

"Ok, mom. Come on, bro."

"I'm comin'." Joel grumbled.

As soon as they were outside, Joanne turned to Joel.

"Ok, keep your eyes peeled for Henry."

"Of course. But, you know you're gonna have to tell mom and dad about this eventually."

"I will. As soon as i figure out how to word it so that they won't kill him. I want him outta my hair, not deep sixed."

"Can't guarantee that won't still happen if he tries anything while I'm around."

Joanne smiled.

"I love you too, Joel." Joanne said and kissed her brother's cheek.

Joel rubbed his cheek, feigning disgust.

"Ew, don't get all mushy on me. Come on, let's get this trip over with."

"Right."

The twins headed out. Once they were a block away from the store, Joel felt eyes on him.

"Joanne?"

"Yeah, i feel it too. He's watching us. But from where?"

Joel scanned around. He caught a glimpse of some black clothes sticking out from behind a tree ten feet ahead.

"I see him. He's behind that tree up there. Come on. Let's cut through this alley." Joel said, taking Joanne by the hand and leading her into an alley to their left.

"It's pretty narrow in here." Joanne said.

"Perfect. Nowhere to go but forward or backward. Jo, go hide behind that dumpster. We'll put one of us in front of him and one behind."

"A pincer trap. I like it." Joanne said as she scurried off behind the trash container.

Joel turned around just as he heard footsteps behind him.

"Well, if it isn't the walking cliche. How's it going, Henry?"

"Where is she? Where's Joanne?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Joel teased, taking a few steps back.

'Just a little further. Come on, belt boy. Take the bait.'

"I'm not screwing around, Narciso. Where is she?" Henry said, walking towards Joel.

"Now, why should I tell you? We're twins, two halves of the same coin. So, since she's my other half, I'm gonna need a pretty damn good reason to tell you anything." Joel said, continuing to walk backwards.

"Oh, I'm sure you'll find that i can be very persuasive." Henry said, pulling a knife from his waistband.

'Crap.' Joel thought, eyeing the blade.

Joanne glanced around the corner of the dumpster and saw the blade. She had to cover her mouth to keep from making any noise.

'Oh, please. Be careful, Joel.'

"Now, now, Henry. Take it easy." Joel said, still backing up.

"You know what really pisses me off? When somebody gets in the way of my love. And i get sorta STABBY when I'm pissed off. Now cut the crap. Tell me where she is." Henry said through gritted teeth.

Finally, Henry stepped into the perfect spot.

"Ok, Ok! I'll tell you! Joanne's right behind you." Joel said, just as Joanne sprang from her hiding spot.

Joanne tackled Henry to the ground while Joel kicked the knife from his hand. The blade slid far up under the dumpster.

"Good work, sis." Joel said, kneeling down.

Joel placed his hands onto Henry's wrists.

"I left my phone at home, but i know you always have yours. So, I'll hold him down while you call the cops."

"Roger that."

The twins traded places and Joanne had punched in the nine in nine one one when Henry started laughing.

"What's so funny, belt boy?" Joel asked.

"You are. You really think you've won. Let me show you how wrong you are!"

Just then, something hit Joel in the chest. It knocked him away from Henry and about a foot back.

"Ah! The hell was that?!" Joel yelled as he rubbed his chest.

Then another unforseen blow struck Joel in the small of his back. This knocked him to the ground.

"Joel!" Joanne yelled and started to move towards her twin.

However, a swirling blue mist suddenly appeared, seperating the siblings. Joanne couldn't see her brother through the haze.

"Ah, ah, ah. Don't spoil the show, dear Joanne." Henry said as he came up behind the girl.

Henry put one arm around Joanne's waist and kept her arms held up over her head with the other.

"Just enjoy the spectacle."

Joanne could hear Joel crying out in pain as he was repeatedly struck by the invisible force.

"What's happening?!" Joanne yelled.

"This is a gift i recieved recently. A power to exterminate anything that gets in my way. I call it Round and Round. Rather appropriate name, right?"

Joanne heard Joel cry out again.

"Joel! Please, stop this, Henry!"

Henry spun Joanne around to make her face him.

"Tell you what. Give me a kiss and I'll consider letting him go." Henry said and closed his eyes and puckered his lips.

Joanne's face flashed to extreme anger. She quickly stomped on Henry's foot and then headbutted him in the face. This knocked him down and Joanne took this moment to leap into the blue mist.

"Joel! I'm here!" Joanne said, running up to her brother.

"You bitch! How dare you?! Can't you see who's the winner here?! Now get back out here and give me that damn kiss!" The twins heard Henry yell from the other side of the mist.

"I'd rather suck face with a sewer pipe!"

"Stupid bitch! I think you need to learn a lesson. I'll beat it into both you and your bastard brother!"

"Jo, why didn't you run?" Joel asked.

"I can't leave my other half behind. Now, let's put our heads together and figure out how to beat this."

Meanwhile, back at the house.

"Oh yeah. Irene, Annakiss. Check out this necklace i got." Emporio said, pulling out said necklace from his pocket.

The steel chain held onto a silver locket emblazoned with the image of a phoenix.

"Wow, that's pretty, Emporio." Irene said.

"Here, have a closer look." Emporio said, passing the trinket to the Narcisos.

As soon as the husband and wife touched the locket, their minds were assaulted by a flood of memories from a past life.

"I remember. My name is Jolyne." Irene said, as a blue humanoid appeared behind her.

"And I'm Anasui." Annakiss said as a being that looked like a diver appeared.

"Yes, it worked!" Emporio cheered.

"Emporio, what the hell is happening?" Irene asked.

"It's the necklace. It can unlock stands in people. And in cases like yours, it even restores memories from past lives along with the stands. It happened to Erma and Wes down in florida too. As soon as they touched it, they got their stands and their memories of being Ermes and Weather back."

"Ok, Emporio. Start explaining. From the beginng and don't miss a detail." Annakiss said.

"Ok, it's like this."

As Emporio began his explanation, the younger Narciso family members felt like they had been struck by lightning.

"Wha, what is this?!" Joanne shouted.

"I don't , i don't know. My head feels like it's splitting!" Joel cried.

The twins grasped their heads until the energy they felt inside burst out of them. The force of this burst was enough to dispel Henry's mist.

"What the hell?!" Henry shouted.

Henry looked at the twins. But, where there should've been just two people, there were now four. Each twin had some sort of being floating behind them.

Behind Joel was an entity his height and build. It had grey skin, covered by a blue jump suit. Large white letter z's ran diagonally from it's right shoulder to it's left hip on it's front and back. It's feet resembled black boots. It had black gloves, with large silver spikes jutting out between it's knuckles. It's face looked very similar to Joel's, but the top half of it's head was covered by a black helmet with a blue visor over the eyes. Two symbols that looked like closed eyes were painted onto the visor.

Meanwhile, Joanne's new accomplice was slightly bigger than her, but still retained a form similar to hers. It's skin was a light red with a white leotard around it's torso. It had white gloves on it's hands and pink boots, ending in stiletto heels, on it's feet. Under the boots appeared to be white leggings, cutting off at mid thigh. A grey stripe ran across it's waist with a pink diamond just under the navel area. It also had a helmet that covered most of it's face, except for the mouth area. The grey helmet had a vaguely bird like appearance and had what looked like silver hair flowing out of the back of it. On the entity's chest, back, hands and the forhead part of the helmet were copies of Joanne's trademark eye symbol.

"Whoa...holy shit." Joannne said as she looked at her and Joel's new friends.

"Took the words right out of my mouth, sis."

"Joel, you know what I think? I think these are stands, like in those stories Uncle Emporio told us as kids."

"That makes sense. These are stands, our stands. And I'll bet that belt boy's got one too."

The two looked over at their black clad opponent. A small black car the size of an RC car was at his feet. It had blood red stripes criss-crossing it in x- shaped patterns all over the body. Large, metallic rat skulls rested over each wheel.

"Yup, there it is." Joel said.

Joanne started cracking up.

"That's what we were worried about?! That cute little thing?" Joanne laughed.

"It still hits pretty hard. Got the bruises to prove it." Joel said.

"Well, why don't we return the favor?"

"With pleasure!" Joel said, cracking his knuckles.

The twins stared down Henry like gunfighters in a duel while their stands slid into fighting stances.

"Hmph! I don't know or care what's going on. All i know is I'm not leaving without Joanne. Get them, Round and Round!"

The stand rocketed at the twins. It veered hard to the right and started circling the twins. As it did, the blue fog started pouring out of the mouths of the rat skulls.

"Ok, so we can see it now. We just can't see where it's coming from cause of this damn fog." Joel said.

"Yeah, this blue crap is annoying. But there's gotta be a way to beat it."

Just then, Joanne caught sight of the stand flying out of the fog, right at Joel's back. In one swift motion, Joanne pulled Joel out of the way and instinctively had her stand attack Henry's.

"Dora!" Joanne's stand cried out as her fist smacked into the front of Round and Round.

Joanne's stand knocked Round and Round away as Joel watched with a smirk.

"Nice shot, sis."

"Thanks. And look, my stand leaves a calling card when it hits something."

Joel looked to see that an image of Joanne's eye symbol had appeared on the front of Round and Round.

"Heh, nice."

Round and Round finally recovered from Joanne's attack and went back into the mist.

"Gimme a break. Here we go again." Joel said.

Suddenly, a vision of exactly where Round and Round was going appeared in Joanne's mind.

"What the hell?" Joanne asked.

"Jo? What's wrong?"

"I can see it. Henry's stand. I can see which way it's going in my head. Almost like I'm riding along with it."

A bolt of relization then struck Joel.

"It's that mark!"

"Huh?"

"Your calling card. I bet that's part of your stand's unique power. Whatever you hit gets one of those eyes put on it. Then you can see what the eyes see. Kinda like cameras beaming a live feed straight into your brain."

"Whoa! So, my stand's perfect for recon and stuff."

"Yeah, and i just came up with the perfect name for her. Private Eyes."

"Private Eyes...I like it! Ok, Private Eyes! Let's do this!"

Just then, Joanne saw Round and Round heading for Joel in her mind's eye.

"Joel, on your right! Four o'clock!"

Joel turned and controlled his stand instinctively, just like his sister.

"Ora!" Joel's stand shouted as he punched Round and Round to the pavement.

"Damn, what a haymaker!" Joanne said.

"I think I'm getting a feel for how to do this. Ok, Jo. You tell me where it's coming from and I'll smack it away. We'll break this bastard yet!" Joel said as RR darted back into it's cloak of fog.

"Right! Let's go!"

Several more attacks came. The twins' teamwork thwarted them all. Finally, RR rode the misty tornado it had created and tried to shoot down at the twins from the top.

"Henry really is a slow learner." Joanne said as she willed Private Eyes to attack.

"Dora!" Private eyes yelled as she spiked the enemy stand into the ground.

It was at this moment that the fog started to clear. The twins could finally see Henry again.

" 'Sigh' Finally,the fog's going away. Looks like Henry isn't hurt. Uncle Emporio did say some stands transferred damage to the user and others didn't. Looks like Henry's doesn't. Lucky him." Joel said.

"Yeah, but he does look tired. No, more like sleepy. He's going to sleep over there. But, why?" Joanne asked.

Joanne then noticed a silvery bead of liquid running down the back of Joel's stand's hand.

"Hmm, i wonder. Joel, let me see your stand's hands."

"Umm, ok."

Joanne examined the stand's hands carefully.

"Yes, it's just like i thought. These spikes are more like big needles. Or maybe stingers. Either way, they have some kind of liquid inside them. I'll bet that liquid acts like anesthesia and it's injected into the target every time your stand hits something. So, every time you hit Henry's stand, you were loading it up with your anesthesia. And while he doesn't suffer from damage done to his stand, looks like he's still vunerable to carry overs from stand powers."

"Heh, so i can knock him out without touching him."

"Yup. And i say, since your power puts people to sleep, we should call your stand Sweet Dreams."

"A little on the nose, but i like it."

As the twins were talking, Henry was struggling to make sense of all this.

"I don't know why I'm so sleepy all of a sudden, but it doesn't matter. I have to take out Joel and take lovely Joanne home with me. Round and Round, go for the throat!"

RR rocketed towards the twins, but they saw it coming. The two nodded to each other and had their stands simultaneously upper cut RR. This sent it hurtling into the air, flipping uncontrolably.

"Boy, he never learns." Joel said.

"Nope. No wonder he was held back twice." Joanne said as she closed the gap between her and Henry.

"Joanne, please." Henry said.

"Gimme a damn break. Please this! Private Eyes!"

"Dorarararararara! Dora!" Private Eyes shouted as she launched a flurry of punches into Henry before sending him flying towards Joel.

"Finish this, Joel!"

"Gladly! Sweet Dreams!"

"Ora ora ora ora ora ora ora ora ora ora ora! Ora!" The stand cried as he rapidly punched Henry then haymakered him into the ground.

Henry was out cold before he hit the ground.

" 'Sigh' Finally." Joel said.

"I'm gonna finish calling the cops now." Joanne said.

Meanwhile, Annakiss and Irene were making sense of Emporio's story.

"So, let me see if I've got this straight. You got wind of somebody running around Miami with the power to blast things to pieces with his voice. Thinkinh this was a stand power, you tried to track him down, but just missed him at his hideout. But, you did pick up that necklace from where he dropped it. The second you touched it, you felt like your stand wanted to activate. Knowing this thing was important, you kept it. Later on, you had dinner with Wes and Erma and you got curious. You had them touch the neckkace to see what would happen and that's when they got their memories and stands back. After that, the three of you worked together to track the guy down. Once you did, you beat him down and then interrogated him as to where he got the necklace. He revealed that he got it while he was here, in Starling. After that, you called the cops, left a note to muzzle him and then made plans. Wes and Erma stayed behind, just in case there were more stand users in Florida causing trouble. And you made your way here, intending to recruit us and find out where this necklace came from." Annakiss said.

"That's it exactly, Anasui. I mean, Annakiss. Sorry, gotta remember that with your memories restored, you're still technically different people. And I'm sorry to drag you into this."

"It's ok, Emporio. You're like family to us. We'll gladly help you. We just gotta keep the kids out of this...Oh my God! The kids! I forgot about them! They've been gone for way too long! Something's wrong, i just know it!" Irene shouted.

Just then, the phone rang. Annakiss answered it.

"Narciso residence. Joanne? Where are you? What?! What are you doing at the police station?! Ok, ok. Just sit tight. We're on our way!"

"Come on, let's go!" Irene yelled.

"I'm coming too!" Emporio called.

Once the three arrived at the station, an officer briefed them about the situation before leaving to talk amongst themselves.

"Why didn't you tell us about this?!" Irene shouted at Joanne.

"Cause you and dad would've killed him. I wanted him dealt with but not like that."

"Well, you got us there. Oh, I'm just glad you two are ok."

"Yeah, we're ok, mom. But, listen. We found out something today." Joel said.

"What's that?" Annakiss asked.

"Those things uncle Emporio told us about, you know stands, they're real. Henry had one and attacked us with it. So, we unlocked our own to fight back. So, no doubt, stands are real."

Annakiss and Irene smiled to each other before revealing their stands to their children.

"We know, dear. We know."


	3. Jojos in wonderland part 1

Once Emporio and the Narciso family had returned from the police station, they warmed up the food and sat down to eat lunch. As they did, the adults explained the previous timeline's events and their rebirths. They also explained the necklace situation. Irene even theorized that the reason the twins got their stands was because of her touching the necklace and the awakening power passing over to them through the blood connection they shared with her. Finally, Annakiss promised that they would train the twins to better understand their new powers.

"But listen, kids. Just because we said we'll train you, that doesn't mean we want you to help investigate the necklace situation. Stand battles are very dangerous, so we don't want you to actively go looking for trouble. Promise us you won't." Irene said sternly.

"Ok, mom. We promise." Joanne said while Joel nodded.

"Well, if it's ok with everybody, i gonna go rub some ice on my bruises." Joel said, standing up.

"I'll help you. Excuse us." Joanne said.

"You think they'll stay outta trouble?" Emporio asked Irene.

"Knowing our Jojos, I can say that they will absolutely do the exact opposite of what i just asked."

"And probably as soon as possible." Annakiss added.

"Well, if they try anything, I'll remind them who the boss is around here. Now, Emporio, pass the pie, please." Irene said, cracking her knuckles.

Meanwhile, Joanne was icing her brother's injuries.

"Well, Joel, is this helping?"

"Yeah, thanks."

"No, thank **you.** Seriously, Joel, thanks for today." Joanne said, kissing both of her brother's cheeks.

"No prob, sis. What are twins for?"

"Beating the shit out of stalkers, apparently."

"Heh, it's always kinda funny to hear miss goodie goodie curse."

"What are you talking about? I say shit at least ten times a day. Shit, shit, shit shit shit. I wouldn't say shit if i had a mouthful of shit."

Joel started laughing at his sister's words.

"Ow, it hurts to laugh. Please, don't make me laugh."

"Shit, sorry. Here, back to icing. Hmm, you know, Uncle Emporio did say that it seemed like stand users healed a hell of a lot faster than normal humans. So, maybe you won't be stuck with these bruises for long."

"I hope not. Man, today was crazy. If you'd told me this morning that I'd have super powers by lunch time, I would've said you were nuts."

"Yeah, me too. But, you know, I've been thinking this whole time."

"Course you have. You never stop thinking."

"Listen! If one person from our school has a stand, maybe others do too. And other folks around town. Uncle Emporio did say that guy in florida got that stand developing necklace here. Odds are, Henry came in contact with it too, or at least another one. Who knows how many necklaces there are floating around town, giving people powers? "

"Hell if i know."

"Exactly. So, I was thinking that, while we promised not to go looking for trouble, it wouldn't hurt to keep an eye out. Then we could deal with troublesome stand users as we find them."

"You're serious? You wanna go through this again?"

"No, but, where there's smoke, there's fire. It's not likely that Henry is the only corrupt stand user in town. And i believe we were given powers this strong for a reason. We could do a lot of good in this town. And i believe we should at least try. I feel a measure of resposibility for this, but i don't wanna do this without you."

"Settle down, spider-girl. I never said no. Let's just not bite off more than we can chew."

"Ok. If we find somebody with powers like that Pucci guy, we'll let mom and dad know. But chumps like Henry are ours."

"Sounds like a plan to me."

After this, the rest of the weekend went by without incedent. The following monday, the school called an assembly to address the attempted assault. No names were dropped but many of the girls around the twins immeadiately pegged Henry. At lunch time, a group of said girls approached the twins in the school courtyard.

"Hey, Jojos." The lead girl called.

"Yes, Cardy? Can we help you?" Joanne asked, making her distaste for the girl known as the gossip queen evident.

"Correct me if i'm wrong, but it was Henry Swift they were talking about at thay assembly, wasn't it? And it was you he attacked,right?"

"Gimme a break. How did you jump to such conclusions?" Joanne asked.

"Well, it was plain as day how bad he had it for you. Kinda seemed stalkery to me. And if I'm right, then I'm sorry for not saying something. Like i said, it seemed stalkery but i never thought it actually was."

' 'Sigh' Give the girl a prize." Joanne relented.

All the girls suddenly swarmed the table, asking way too many questions for Joel's liking.

"Girls, please. Jo's been through a lot in the last couple days. Can we please not do this now?" Joel asked.

"Oh, yeah, sorry. Got carried away, heh heh. Um, well, see you later." Cardy said and led the other girls away.

"That girl's got a future in tabloids." Joel said.

"Tell me about it. Hmm, what do you think her stand would be if she had one?"

"Probably something that would let her sniff out juicy scoops easier."

"Yeah, probably. You know, i don't like her gossiping. She was the one who let the tragic twins story out in the first place, after all. But I know, at her core, she is a decent person. She just can't keep her mouth shut."

"You got that right."

Just then, the twins heard an ear piercing scream.

"What the hell was that?!" Joel yelled.

"Let's check it out!" Joanne called.

The twins darted around the corner to the side area of the courtyard. There they found a girl known for being a bully named Kimberly.

"What happened?!" Joanne yelled to Kimberly's two friends nearby.

"We don't know!" A girl the twins knew as Sasha said.

"One minute she's fine, the next she gets this really funny look on her face. Then she starts screaming." The other girl, named Nicole, said.

Joanne knelt down to check on Kimberly. She could hear Kimberly muttering.

"Get'em off me, get'em off me."

"Get what off you?" Joanne questioned softly.

"The bugs. So many bugs. Get them off me."

"Bugs? What bugs?" Joanne wondered as she scanned the other girl and found nothing.

Joel, meanwhile, was scanning the area. He had a gut feeling something was off with this whole situation. Around a nearby corner, Joel spotted a wisp of misty energy he knew the look of very well.

'That's the energy stand users give off!' Joel thought.

Joel took off like a shot after the wisp.

"What the?! Joel!" Joanne called.

"I saw something! Get whatever info you can!" Joel yelled back.

Joel darted around the corner and caught sight of a female figure running around the next one. Joel poured on the speed, and came up to the corner in seconds. He started around it just in time to see a white gloved fist flying at him.

Joel quickly ducked and then rolled about a foot away. When he rose back up, he caught sight of a what had attacked him. Before was a female figure, but clearly not human. It was definitely a stand, with cream colored skin and an outfit that looked like something a high class magician would wear on stage. It had a black suit jacket with the coat tails flared out the back over an off white dress shirt with a pink bow tie. It's legs were mostly exposed save for the black shorts it wore with a pink belt and what looked like pink high heels. It's arms had elbow length white gloves with black and white spiral patterns on the backs of the hands. It had a tiny slit for a mouth, no visible nose and large, red oval shaped eyes with five black slits running across each one. Shoulder length pink hair and a tiny black top hat completed the ensemble.

"Damm, the user's barring me with her stand." Joel thought, seeing the outline of the stand user go around the next corner.

Just then, the stand started throwing rocks at Joel.

"Tadadadadada!" The stand yelled as it hurled so many rocks at Joel he counted keep count.

"Shit! Sweet Dreams!"

"Oraoraoraora!" Sweet Dreams yelled as he appeared and started to pulverize the rocks.

Joel used his stand to push through the onslaught until Sweet Dreams was able to grab the enemy stand. However, just as he was about to punch it, it flipped backward and caught Sweet Dreams in the chin with a kick fron it's right leg, which Joel felt.

"Damn it! Ok, I suffer as he suffers. Good to know. Now knock her out, Sweet Dreams!"

Sweet Dreams traded blows with stand fr a few seconds before finally managing to land a blow into it's left thigh.

"Yes, finally!"

Joel's celebration was cut short as the enemy stand began to fade away.

"Damn. User must've gotten too far away for it to stay out anymore."

"Joel!"

Joel turned to see Joanne coming up.

"Hey, learn anything?"

"Not much more than what we already knew. What about you? What did you see and chase after?"

"I thought i saw the energy of a stand user coming from that corner back there. Figured they might be responsible. Chased them this far before they sicced their stand on me. Had a brief fight before tge user got away and the stand disappeared. Damn thing threw rocks at me. Had to smash them with Sweet Dreams."

"Rocks? I don't see any rocks. A lot shredded paper, but no rocks."

Joel looked to see his sister was telling the truth. There was nothing but paper where he thought rock bits should be

"What? But how? There were rocks. Heard them break and everything."

"Maybe the stand's ability turns one thing into another. Until it's destroyed anyway."

"Yeah, maybe. Well, at least I managed to land a hit on the stand. So, assuming they suffer from damage to the stand, we're gonna be looking for somebody, most likely a girl based on the outline i saw, nursing an injury on her left thigh."

"Ok, good work...damn. There's the bell. Come on. We'll continue this later."


	4. Jojos in wonderland part 2

The twins were making their way back to class. All the while, they were discussing the stand user Joel had fought. Joanne was so wrapped up in pondering the situation, that she wasn't paying attention to the hall in front of her. She ended up bumping into someone and knocked all the books out of their arms.

"Oh, I'm so sorry."

The girl in front of the twins was slightly shorter than them, with vibrant, shoulder length red hair held back by a black and white spiral patterned hair band. She wore a light red skirt over black, flower patterned stockings going down into white pumps. He torso was covered by a black button up coat with red buttons and a short cape attached to the back.

"Oh, it's you, Alexis. I'm sorry. I wasn't watching where i was going. Here, I'll help you pick this up." Joanne said, kneeling down.

"It's ok, Joanne. I know you've got a lot on your mind. What with Henry and everthing." Alexis said.

"Wait, how did you...Damn it, Cardy."

"Girl works fast, I'll give her that." Joel said, clearly annoyed.

Joanne quickly forgot about Cardy when she noticed some unusual papers amoungst Alexis's books as she picked them up.

"Huh? What are these, Alexis?"

Alexis's face quickly flashed to embarassment.

"Um, they're nothing."

"They looked like song lyrics. Do you write music, Alexis?"

"So, what if i do?" Alexis said defensively.

"That's pretty cool. I can play violin and Joel's goood with drums. Can you play anything?"

"The flute, kinda. But, I'm better at singing."

"Nice. I can't sing for shit."

"That doesn't stop you in the shower. I could hear you all the way down stairs the other day. Nails. On. A. Chalk. Board." Joel kidded.

"Shut up!" Joanne yelled.

Alexis quietly giggled.

"I kinda envy you, Jojos."

"Why's that?" Joanne asked as she quickly slugged Joel in the shoulder for his joke.

"You guys have each other. I never had any siblings. Never will."

"Oh, yeah, that's right." Joel said, quietly.

The image of the newspaper from two years back flashed in Joel's mind. The Buckeye diner downtown had caught fire. There was only one casualty. A customer who had gotten trapped inside. Her name was Sydney Lennon, Alexis's mother.

"So, I'm kinda jealous of you two."

"I'll loan Joel to you if you wanna try this out." Joanne said.

"Hey!"

"Turnabout is fair play!"

Alexis giggled some more at the twins' antics.

"Anyway, Alexis. You ride the same bus as us home, right?" Joanne asked.

"Yeah, why?"

"I wanna sit with you today. I wanna hear you sing some if these lyrics. I'd like to do it now, but the next class starts in two minutes."

"Oh, ok." Alexis said, clearly embarassed.

"Alright, see you later then."

On the bus ride home, Joanne was true to her word. She sat with Alexis and listened to her sing.

"You're so good, Alexis. But, why are you so quiet?" Joanne asked.

"It's cause she doesn't want you to hear how much she actually sucks!" A voice called.

Joanne looked and it was Sasha, Kimberly's friend from earlier. Joanne recalled then that not only was Kimberly known to be a bully, but her two cohorts were as well.

Joanne could see the irratation on Alexis's face, so she decided to speak up.

"You know, Sash, you're talking pretty big for somebody who was pissing her pants when Kim had her little episode at lunch."

"The hell are you on about?!"

"Did you forget already? How me and my brother came to see what was up with Kim suddenly screaming bloody murder? I remember that while Nicole was more verbal with her freaking out, you were more physical. I've got really good eyes and i could see you shaking like a leaf in a hurricane."

The whole bus could hear this arguement between the two girls and started busting out laughing at Joanne's comments.

"You're full of shit, Joanne!" Sasha yelled.

"And you're a little less full. After all, your eyes are a little less brown. Did you shit yourself too when you pissed your pants?"

"Girl, if you don't shut your mouth!"

"What? You'll sic Kim on me? Oh, wait..."

"Shut up!"

"Settle down back there!" The bus driver called.

Sasha sunk into her seat as Joanne slightly stuck her tongue out.

"That was awesome, Joanne." Alexis said.

"Eh, sometimes you just gotta put them in their place. Bully the bully, you know?"

"Yeah, totally. But I'm too big of a chicken-shit to do that."

The next day, Sasha was the one who screamed at lunch. This time, a large crowd had gathered. Thus the twins had been unable to get first hand info. All they had heard was that Sasha was mumbling about snakes and seemed to be in worse shape than Kim was.

"That's two of the bullies three. If this is the work of a stand user, then they're targeting them. So, next will be Nicole. We should keep an eye on her." Joanne said.

"Yeah. Man, why couldn't it be somebody with fewer enemies than these three? Then the line of suspects wouldn't be so damn long." Joel complained.

The next day, the jojos followed Nicole around. They hid behind bushes, around corners, anything they could use. After a while, they noticed a female figure approaching Nicole from behind. The energy of a stand user started to flow from the person's body. The magician like stand from before appeared and started to rapidly approach Nicole.

"Oh no you don''t!" Joel said through gritted teeth.

He darted out and baseball slid behind a bush. This kept him out of sight but also got him close enough to launch his stand.

"Sweet Dreams!"

"Ora!" Sweet Dreams shouted as he tackled the magician to the ground.

Nicole the heard the noise of the stands disturbing the ground as they tussled.

"The hell is that noise?...I'd better get outta here. I'm hearing things. I don't wanna end up like Kim and Sasha." Nicole said to herself as she ran off.

As soon as Nicole was gone, the enemy stand user fled, recalling her stand in the process.

"After her!" Joanne shouted.

The twins chased after the stand user, but she was surprisingly fast. She kept ahead far enough to keep them from seeing who she was. Finally, the twins chased the user to the rec building.

"She went inside. Be ready for anything." Joanne said.

"Right."

The twins entered caustiously. The fiund the hallway empty.

"Where the hell did she go?" Joel said.

"She couldn't have gone far. Let's keep looking."

Just then, the door to a women's bathroom nearby opened.

"Oh, hi, guys." Came a familiar voice.

"Alexis? What the heck are you doing here?" Joel asked.

"Using the bathroom. I had to go pretty bad and all the ones that were close in the main building were taken up. So, i rushed over here ."

"Ok. Say, did you somebody come in here just now? Another girl?" Joanne asked.

"No, i just now came out of there. But i heard somebody run in. They went that way." Alexis said, pointing down the hall.

"Thanks. This girl's bad news, so we're trying to catch her."

"Good luck."

The twins started down the hall way carefully. They were about to sneak around a corner when Joel sensed something behind him.

"Ora!" Sweet Dreams shouted as he emerged from Joel's back to grab the hand of the enemy stand inches from his neck.

"The hell?!" Joanne heard a familiar voice say as she turned around.

Joanne saw the arm of the enemy stand coming from Alexis.

"Alexis?! The hell?!"

"It's her, Jo. She's the stand user that attacked Kim and Sasha."

"Stand User? Is that what you call people like us? So, I guess this is a stand then." Alexis said coldly as the rest of her stand emerged.

"But, Alexis, why? You're such a nice girl. Why use a gift like a stand to attack people?" Joanne asked.

"Because I'm sick and tired of people like them! People who make others feel less than. That take away from others' happiness. So, I'm going to punish them. All of them. And i can't let you stop me." Alexis said as her stand pushed Sweet Dreams back.

"I'm sorry, Joanne. We could've been friends. Uptown Girl!" Alexis said, with a small tear rolling from her right eye.

Alexis's stand floated in front of her while crossing it's arms in an x shape.

"Uptown World!" Alexis called as the spirals on the backs of her stand's hands began to spin.

The twins watched in utter confusion as the walls and hall began to distort and change. Everything became blurry for a moment.

When it had settled, the jojos found themselves in what could best be described as Alice in Wonderland on the worst kind of drugs. The landscape was twisted and contorted in unnatural angles. The ground was a mismatch of poisonous looking purple and toxic waste green. Trees with horrifying faces dotted the grounds.

"Welcome to my nightmare. My uptown world. I am queen here. And I say, down with the jojos. Oh boys." Alexis said.

Suddenly, soldiers and knights that looked as if they had just emerged from the underworld appeared out of thin air. Then the ground in front of the jojos began to rise up as a gigantic, three headed feline with long, shaggy and spikey fur and the most evil of grins on each of it's faces came forth.

"Holy shit." Joel said.

"You said it." Joanne said.

"Destroy them!" Alexis called.

"Oh shit!" The twins yelled together as the horde descended on them.

"Sweet Dreams!" "Private Eyes!"

"Oraoraoraoraora!" "Dorarararara!" The stands called as they were launched against the onslaught.

But none of their attacks seemed to land.

"What the hell?! It's like I'm swinging at air!" Joel shouted.

"Me too! But we can't give up! Keep trying!"

Larger demonic looking soldiers appeared and sucessfully seperated the twins. Both continued to fight valiantly but were being pushed back.

Joanne was pushed back until she bumped into something.

"What the? There's an invisible wall here!"

"Great, she's probably got us boxed in!" Joel yelled.

"Hmm, i wonder." Joanne said to herself.

She had her stand strike the wall and leave a recon eye on it. Within moments, the eye was beaming what it saw into Joanne's head.

"There's nothing there! Joel, stop fighting!"

"What are you, crazy? Do you see what we're up against?"

"Joel, my stand's eyes see everything and show me all they see. And all this eye i put on this wall is showing me is us and Alexis in the rec building hallway. Meaning none of this is real. It's all an illusion created by her stand. That's why it felt like we were swinging at nothing. Because we were."

"You mean that this is all in our heads? That she's got us hypnotized?"

"Yes, and i'll prove it." Joanne said, starting to walk towards Alexis.

Joanne passed right through the soldiers in her way.

"I see. Well, then, forward march."

The jojos approached Alexis slowly.

"Stay back! I'm warning you!"

"Hollow threats. We already know how your power works. Nothing's for real." Joel said

"My fists are real. Uptown Girl!"

"Tadadadadada!" Uptown Girl shouted as she fired a flurry of punches.

Sweet Dreams and Private Eyes blocked everything.

"You can't beat us, Alexis." Joanne said.

"I have to! This mission is all I've got! It's the only thing that makes me feel important!"

"What are you talking about, girl? There's plenty that makes you important. All lives are inportant." Joel said.

"You wouldn't understand! You have always had each other. You've always had sonebody there to pick you up when you're down. I lost that when my mom died. Nobody else cares about me."

"Bullshit! I care!" Joanne said.

"What? But you're trying to stop me!"

"Of course I am. I understand how you feel. It feels good to give bullies a taste of their own medicine. It can make you feel like you're on top of the world. Like you are the most important person there is. But, this vigilante way you're doing it often leads to escalations of force and brutality. What if you find somebody that you decide doesn't just deserve to be frightened by your powers, but to be physically pulverized too? Normal people aren't made to handle the beatings a stabd can dish out. Or what if you scare somebody who has a weak heart? They could have a heart attack and not make it. I know these are extreme cases, but they could happen. And would you really want the loss of a life on your hands?"

"N-no." Alexis said, stopping her attack.

"And we don't either. That's why we're trying stop you. To keep you from going down that dark road and past the point of no return. Si, you see, we care. Right, Joel?"

"That's right. Don't be like this, Alexis. I know you are a really good person at heart. You are a light in this dark world. We need more like you. Don't let your light be snuffed out."

"But, it hurts. It hurts so bad. I get picked on for one thing or another all the time here, and i don't have anybody to turn to at home. My dad's too busy being lovey dovey with my new step-mom, Yoko. Get this, she was my god mom when mom was alive. She promised mom that she would always take care of me. Well, how is this taking care of me?"

"Seems we've found the root of the problem here. Alexis, have you tried talking to your dad and step-mom?" Joanne asked.

"No, what's the point?"

"As somebody who's had plenty of stuff blow up in his face because he made an assumption, I wouldn't recommend being so hasty. My gut says there's a lot to be gained by talking to your parents." Joel said.

"I think so too. Tell you what, Alexis. From now on, we're your number one supporters and best friends. You stick with us. We'll face the bullies together. And as for your parents, we'll go with you after school to talk with them. So, you won't be alone. Deal?"

"Deal." Alexis said, dispelling her stand's illusion.

True to their word, the twins went with Alexis and helped explain what she had been through to her dad and step-mom. Upon hearing this, Yoko, Alexis's step-mom busted into tears and sprang up from the couch. She scooped Alexis up in a tight hug.

"Oh, sweetie. I am so sorry. I should've been paying more attention. Your father and I thought you were doing fine on your own. We thought you were just going through an independent phase. We figured you'd come to us if you needes something. So, we were happy to keep honeymooning until then. But, we were wrong to do that. I am so sorry, dear. It will never happen again, i swear." Yoko said, pouring her heart out.

"Please forgive us, sweetie." Alexis's dad said as he walked up.

Alexis got teary eyed.

"Raise my allowance and we'll talk." Alexis joked.

"Done deal. And sweetie, never forget, we love you. We always have. I have loved you fron the first moment i saw you as a baby. I love you as much as I loved your mom, and we know how much i loved her. She was like my sister. And you have been like family to me too. Way before i married your dad. So, from the bottom of my heart, believe me when i say, I love you, Alexis." Yoko said.

"I, I love you too, Yoko."

Joel noticed Joanne was drying her eyes.

"Don't get so sappy." Joel teased.

"Whatever. It's a beautiful moment."

"That it is. And it's all cause of you, Jo. I was willing to keep fighting, but betbetter heads prevailed. So, this one's all yours."

"Thanks, but I couldn't have done it without you backing me. I'm not the Jojos by myself, you know."

"Oh, Joel, Joanne. Do you need a ride home? I'd like meet your parents." Alexis's dad said.

"Me too. I'd like to meet who raised such kind and caring kids." Yoko agreed.

"Well, I guesa we're off to you're guys' house." Alexis said happily.

When the gang arrived at the Narciso residence, Irene answered the door.

"Oh, boy. What did they do?"


	5. A bizarre world

The days following the incident with Alexis had been peaceful for the Jojos. Alexis herself had apologized profusely for attacking the twins. She promised to make it up to them by always being there as the third member of their team.

Joanne was delighted. But Joel reminded Alexis that, should she ever try anything like that again, then Sweet Dreams would make sure she wouldn't wake up for a while. Joanne was flabberghasted by her brother's words, but Alexis herself waved her off. She said that Joel was being completely reasonable and she was glad she was being given a chance.

The day was now saturday and it found Alexis visiting her new friends. But just before she arrived, Irene and Annakiss had finally decided to put the kids through some stand training. Alexis was informed of this and volunteered to wait and watch. Irene agreed to this and then announced that the theme of the training would be thinking outside the box.

Irene said they would face off, her versus Joanne and Annakiss versus Joel. They would spar for a bit, so the kids could see how their parents' powers worked. Then it would be their job to figure out how to overcome their parents with out simply using brute force.

Joel was first to experience battle against a veteran stand user. He traded blows with his father for a while, then Annakiss used Diver Down's ability. The stand dove inside of Joel's body and quickly demonstrated how it's power worked by lightly kicking Joel's right knee from inside.

"Shit. That hurt." Joel said, rubbing his knee.

"Language, son." Annakiss joked.

"Pot calling the kettle black, dad." Joel spat back.

"Well, you got me there. So, how do you plan to beat me? I'm sure you realize that if you try to attack me directly, i'll just have diver down take you out from inside. So, how do you beat an opponent you can't attack head on?"

"By getting creative. Sweet Dreams!"

Sweet Dreams appeared and, to everyone's surprise, started throwing flurries of punches at Joel.

"Ora ora ora ora ora ora ora ora!"

"What the hell?!" Annakiss said.

"Come on, dad. As much as i like to sleep, did you really think i wouldn't try my stand's power out on myself? I tried that night one. But it turns out, my stand has no effect on me, at all. I don't even take damage from his punches. But, can we say the same about Diver down?"

Annakiss suddenly felt very drowsy.

"Crap! The anestesia is kicking in. Diver Down, come back!"

Sweet Dreams grabbed Diver Down by the throat as he emerged.

"Oh no you don't! We aren't done yet. Not until you say uncle. Hmm, i wonder how long you'd be out if you took Sweet Dream's power straight to the head, right into the brain?" Joel said as Sweet Dreams held Diver Down up and aimed his free fist at DD's head.

"Ok, ok! I give! Rather give up than be knocked out for days."

"Thought you'd see reason. Now, you'd better lay down and sleep that stuff off." Joel said as his and his father's stands disappeared.

"I will, after the girls fight. Make it quick, ladies. I don't know how long I can stay awake."

"Don't worry, pops. This'll be over quickly." Joanne said confidently.

"That's what you think, little girl." Irene said, cracking her neck.

"Little? I'm fifteen, mummy dearest."

"Still little in my eyes."

"Well, mom, I hate to tell ya this, but your 'little girl' is gonna kick your ass."

"And you kiss me with that mouth? I oughta wash it out with soap."

"I'll let you, but only if you beat me."

"You're on! Stone Free!"

"Private Eyes!"

The two female stands traded blows back and forth. Joanne quickly got the jist of how her mother's powers worked. And she just as quickly formulated a plan.

It started with a missed punch.

"Ha! Missed me, missed me. Now you gotta kiss me." Irene joked.

"Sure i will, once i've beaten you down." Joanne said through gritted teeth.

Joanne kept having her stand throw punches, which were all blocked by Stone Free. What wasn't blocked missed due to Irene's powers. After a few minutes, Irene was up to a count of ten missed punches.

"Boy, you must really wanna give mommy some kisses. That's ten missed punches." Irene laughed.

"Missed? Oh, no, mother. I haven't missed at all. I've been hitting exactly what I've been aiming at. Look around you."

Irene looked around and noticed that Private Eyes symbol was spread across the back yard, in ten different locations.

"Remember how my powers work, mummy? Those eyes beam whatever they see directly into my head. So, I can see all the angles across this yard. Which means i have the perfect set up to make the rest of my plan work. Private Eyes!"

Joanne's stand started firing punches more rapidly. In response, Irene used her powers to unravel her body and bend it in all sorts of directions. But, Private Eyes kept coming. So, Irene kept unraveling and moving.

After a solid minute, Irene realized that if she moved a single inch more, she was going to tie herself up in knots. She could wind herself back, but that would leave her open to attack. Either way, she knew she was screwed.

"Seems you finally caught on. So, what now, Mrs. Narciso?" Joanne asked with a very Irene like smirk.

"Alright, I give. You beat me, Miss Narciso." Irene said jokingly.

Everyone watched as Irene slowly and carefully wound herself back up. Once she was back together, she walked over and patted Joanne on the head.

"Good job, dear. I'm proud of you. You too, Joel. I'd say you passed the test."

"Thanks, mom. Oh, wait a sec. Mom, bend down." Joanne said to her taller mother.

Irene bent over and Joanne rapidly gave her mother ten pecks on the cheek.

"There's the kisses i owed you. I love you, mom." Joanne said with a bright smile.

"Aw, I love you too, baby. Now, what do you wanna do next?"

"I'm gonna go lay down. I can't stay awake much longer." Annakiss said and headed inside.

"Well, while he's asleep, what say we go to see that one movie your dad didn't want to?"

"You mean The Curse remake?" Joanne said excitedly.

"Yeah. Don't know why, but your dad's always been a stick in the mud when it comes to horror movies. So, we can go see it while he's knocked out. Alexis, you wanna come with?" Irene asked.

"Sure. I love the curse series. Let me send a text to dad and Yoko so they know where I am."

Alexis proceeded to do so and a moment later, both parents texted back to have fun. Yoko also requested a poster for the movie if they had them.

"Okay, we're good. Also, Yoko wants a poster if they have them."

"Noted. Alright, let's put Alexis's bike up in the garage and head out." Irene said to the teens.

The four were soon on their way. Irene noticed Alexis fiddling through her purse in the back seat.

"What are you doing, Alexis?"

"Making sure I have enough money."

"For what? Snacks and popcorn?"

"No, for my ticket."

"Alexis, I'm paying for all four of us."

"But, I..."

"Alexis, I know what you're thinking. And you don't have to feel like you need to pay us back for the fight with the kids. You've already done that by becoming their friend. And we aren't holding anything against you. We understand where you were coming from. And frankly, if even half the stories I've heard about those girls you scared witless are true, then they deserved what they got. Just don't do it again, ok? Vigilante justice can land you in hot water and I don't want to see anything bad happen to a sweet girl like you."

"Ok, Mrs. Narciso. Thanks."

"Just Irene is fine, Alexis. Oh, yes, I just remembered that I was gonna ask you something. How did you get your stand, Alexis? How long have you had it?"

"Um, a little over a month now. As for how, well, I can't say for sure. I remember the day perfectly well though. I went with dad to a pawn shop. He was looking to buy a gun on the cheap. Just something to carry in the car for protection."

"I understand. Never can be too careful."

"Right. Well, while dad was talking with the pawn shop guy, I was walking around, looking at stuff. I came across this really pretty necklace. I picked it up and I felt weird. Like a pins and needles feeling just came on all over me. So, i put it back down. A little bit later, Uptown girl appeared for the first time."

Irene pulled over to the side of the road and fished out her phone.

"Did the necklace look like this?" Irene asked, calling up a picture of the necklace Emporio had showed them.

"Yes, exactly like that. Why?"

"Our friend Emoprio found a crook in Florida who had the one in this picture. He used it to get a stand and commit crimes, so Emporio took it away. This necklace, or maybe these necklaces, have the power to awaken stands in those who have the potential. Or it can reawaken stands that had been sealed away, like in my and Annakiss's case."

"Sealed away?" Alexis asked

"Long story. I'll tell you about it later. Short version, my friends and I tangled with a bad guy and beating him caused our stands to get sealed away until Emporio brought that necklace around the other day."

"Is that how you guys got your stands?" Alexis asked the twins.

"No, we weren't even home at the time when mom touched the necklace." Joel said.

"But, it's because I touched it that they got their stands. You see, a long time ago, my dad, great grandpa and their friends fought a man named Dio. Dio had gotten ahold of arrows that could awaken stands in people. Now, they found out that the stand arrows' effect carried over to all currently living relatives. And Dio was related to us in a very, **very** complicated way. So, when he used an arrow on himself, the effect carried over to my dad, great grandpa, great uncles and grandma. And it carried down to me once i was born. These necklaces work the same way as those arrows."

"Ok, so now i know i need to check my relatives to see if they got stands when I did. But that doesn't explain the jojos' stands."

"Well, apparently, having a blood connection is all the stand awakening power seems to care about. And I gave the twins a blood transfusion to treat an illness they had when they were little. So, having some of my blood was good enough to get them stands."

"Wow, I didn't know that. I'd heard the tragic twins story, but not that."

"That's cause Cardy hasn't heard it either. And we'd like to keep it that way." Joel said.

"Understood. She won't hear a peep from me. And hey, if she ever gets a little too mouthy, Uptown Girl can do something about it." Alexis said mischeviously.

"Alexis." Irene said sternly.

"Just kidding." Alexis said with a smile.

" 'Sigh' Gimme a break...hmm. You know what, Alexis? It occurs to me that you've had to learn everything about your stand on your own. You could probably use a trainer. Stop by on Saturday mornings from now on and I'll train you along with the twins."

"I appreciate that, Ms. Irene. But, I don't know if I'll be a very good student."

"Won't know till we try. Also, I'm gonna need the address of that pawn shop."

"Um, okay."

Just then, Alexis's phone rang.

"Hello?" Alexis said, hitting speaker phone like she always did.

"Hey sweetie."

"Oh, hi, daddy. What's up?"

"You know how i got from work this morning?"

"Yeah, you had to rush off to one of your stores. What happened?"

"A robbery. Lots of stuff gone. Problem is, while we got the suspect on camera, we can't prove he did it."

"What do you mean you can't prove it?"

"Alexis, there's just no way to explain how he did it. We see him on camera, he takes his phone out, takes pictures of the stuff, then the stuff gets hazy and distorted and then poof, gone. The only explanation is that he took the stuff but that doesn't explain what the camera shows."

"Maybe he's a hacker and his phone sent out a signal that messed up the cameras."

"Maybe. Anyway, I'm gonna be late getting home cause of this. So, can you swing by George's shop and pick up that tablet for Yoko after the movie?"

"Tell him yes." Irene said softly.

"Ms. Irene could hear you dad. She said yes, we will."

"Thanks a lot. Have fun at the movie."

"We will, daddy. Good luck."

"Thanks, baby. I love you."

"Love you more, bye."

"Do you always answer your phone on speaker?" Joanne asked.

"Yeah. I just find it more convient. Frees up my hands and what not. 'Sigh' Poor daddy. Being a district manager for Speed Thru is tough on days like this."

"Sounds like it." Irene said.

Just then, Joanne and Alexis's phones pinged fron text messages.

'I was thinking about what Alexis's dad said. It could've been a hacker, but my gut says there's more going on. I smell a stand user. Couldn't hurt to check into it, right?' Said the message from Joel.

'Now that you mention it, yeah, it does feel like that. Sure, let's check it out. Alex, you down?' Joanna texted into the group chat.

'Hell yeah. Anything to help daddy.'

'Alright. Tomorrow we'll meet up at the Speed Thru. Let's see what we come up with.'


End file.
